Court Correspondent :
The Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances has received 400 complaints within its first 13 working days, concerning victims of enforced disappearances during the previous Awami League government.
According to complaints from victims’ families, the commission has uncovered a detention facility inside the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI) Headquarters.
The facility, known as the “Aynaghar” (House of Mirrors), is a Joint Interrogation Cell (JIC) located within the DGFI Headquarters, consisting of 22 cells in a two-storey building.
Retired High Court Justice Moyeenul Islam Chowdhury, the commission’s chair, disclosed this information during a press conference at the commission’s office in the capital’s Gulshan on Thursday.
Moyeenul Islam Chowdhury said, “We are investigating the cases of those who were victims of enforced disappearance by state forces or law enforcement agencies. We will also summon the accused individuals. If they fail to appear, we will take action according to the law.”
He further said, “Most of the allegations of enforced disappearances have been directed at RAB, DGFI, the Detective Branch (DB) and the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit.”
“On September 25, we visited the Aynaghar at DGFI, and on October 1, we visited DB and CTTC. However, we found no detainees. It seems everyone was released after August 5.”
The deadline for submitting complaints was originally set for September 30, but Moyeenul Islam Chowdhury announced that the deadline had been extended to October 10.
He said that 75 persons have given statements in person, and many others have submitted complaints by post or email. He added that if necessary, the deadline for receiving complaints may be extended further. Whether the investigation will be completed within three months will be assessed later, he said.
Commission member Nur Khan said, “We will not separate or identify victims based on their identities. We want to hear every complaint. We want to understand what happened and how people were detained in violation of the law.”
Commission member Nabila Idris mentioned that many of the 400 complaints include cases that have come to light for the first time. She noted that many victims had never spoken about their disappearances before, and general diaries (GDs) were not filed at police stations.
Another commission member, Sazzad Hossain, said, “The Aynaghar we saw during our visit matched the descriptions provided by victims. However, some changes have been made.
Many crucial pieces of evidence have been destroyed, particularly the writings on the walls, which have been painted over. We have verbally informed them and also sent a written notice, asking that no further alterations be made to Aynaghar until the investigation is complete.”
The government formed the commission on August 27 to investigate enforced disappearances carried out by law enforcement agencies during the Awami League regime.
According to the government notification, the commission was tasked with investigating enforced disappearances at the hands of members of any law enforcement or enforcement agency in the country, including the police, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Special Branch, Detective Branch, Ansar Battalion, National Security Intelligence (NSI), military forces, DGFI, and the Coast Guard.
